Chapter 3
The next morning at 8 a.m., I arrived at the Andrews Group headquarters.
As I walked into the building wearing a black suit dress, the receptionist was stunned.
"May I ask who you are?" she asked.
Otis stepped forward behind me, his voice calm.
"This is Ms. Andrews, chairwoman of the Andrews Group," he replied.
The receptionist's expression shifted from confusion to shock.
"M-Ms. Andrews?" she stammered.
The elevator took us straight to the 68th floor.
When the boardroom doors opened, all twelve directors were already seated.
The head chair at the end of the long table had sat empty for three years.
I walked over, pulled out the chair, and sat down.
"Thank you for waiting," I said.
The room fell silent for a full five seconds.
Clive Andrews, my uncle, was the first to speak.
"Elena, you've been missing for three years. You can't just walk in here and take that seat," he demanded.
"This seat was always mine," I replied.
"And what makes you think you deserve it?"
"By my grandfather's will, by the 37% of shares I hold, and because I'm the only direct heiress of the Andrews family."
Clive's face darkened.
"You're a married woman who—" he started.
"I'm divorced," I cut him off.
I tossed a copy of the divorce agreement onto the table.
"Any other questions?" I asked.
Isabel Andrews, my aunt by marriage, cut in.
"Elena, Clive didn't mean it like that. You just got back, and you're not familiar with the company's situation. Clive has been managing the company for the past three years," she said.
"Revenue down 18 percent. Market share shrunk by three points. All overseas business lines suspended," I said.
I opened the financial report in front of me.
"This is what you call management?" I asked.
Clive's face went from pale to red.
"The market's been rough—" he started.
"Averon Group, number two in the industry, saw a 12% increase at the same time," I said.
I closed the financial report.
"Uncle Clive, blaming the market might fool the shareholders, but you can't pull that on me," I said.
Everyone fell silent.
I stood up.
"Starting today, every business line reports directly to me. The finance department has three days to finish the audit and have the results on my desk," I said.
I let my gaze linger on each person in the room.
"Meeting adjourned," I said.
As I walked out of the boardroom, my phone buzzed.
It was an unknown number.
I answered, and Gloria's voice came through.
"Elena, did you go back to your family?" she asked.
Her tone was airy, almost dismissive.
She continued, "Derek and I talked it over. That 2.5 million dollars in child support is way too much. One million dollars should be enough.
"As for the remaining 1.5 million dollars, just use it to buy a place in a top school district for Shane and Leila."
I leaned against the floor-to-ceiling window in the hallway, watching the traffic flow along the entire financial district below.
"Gloria," I said.
"Yeah?" she replied.
"Did you check the Andrews Group's stock price before you called?" I asked.
There was silence on the other end.
"Tell Derek I'll return the exact 2.5 million dollars," I said.
I hung up.
"My son doesn't need a single cent from the Garrett family," I murmured.
Otis stood quietly behind me and asked, "Ms. Andrews, what's next?"
"Set up a meeting with Archie for me," I said.
"Mr. Wilcox?" Otis clarified.
"Yeah," I answered.
I looked out at the silver skyscraper across the way, the headquarters of Averon Group.
"Let's get down to business," Elena said.